Charles E. Kenahan, a stockbroker with Merrill Lynch in Boston since 2007, was fired following allegations of churning. His client Robert Levine, co-founder of the former billion-dollar network equipment giant Cabletron Systems, accused the 34-year veteran broker of providing unsuitable investment recommendations and making excessive trades between February 2012 and December 2017.
FINRA Individual Settlement Largest In Over A Decade
The complaint, filed in March 2018, went to a final hearing in front of a FINRA arbitration panel, during which Merrill Lynch agreed to pay a settlement of $40 million dollars. According to Craig McCann, principal of the Securities Litigation and Consulting Group, this is the largest settlement involving an individual claimant in over a decade, with over 29,000 claimants during this time period.
Merrill Lynch Facing Additional Claim
Merrill Lynch is also facing a similar claim for yet another of Kenahan’s clients, this time for the sum of $42 million dollars according to his FINRA BrokerCheck report.
The pending arbitration case was filed with FINRA in February of 2018 by former New Hampshire governor and co-founder of Cabletron Systems, Craig Benson. According to CNBC, Benson alleges that Kenahan churned his portfolio as well during his time with Merrill Lynch. Benson and a spokesperson for Merrill Lynch declined a request to comment.
If Benson’s case reaches a similar settlement, Bank of America Merrill Lynch will be paying over $80 million as a result of Kenahan’s excessive trading practices and churning.
Speak with a Securities Fraud Attorney
Kaplan Rothstein Prüss Peraza, P.A. has vast experience with cases related to securities fraud or stockbroker misconduct. If you are looking for a securities fraud attorney to review your rights and options, the securities fraud lawyers at Kaplan Rothstein Prüss Peraza, P.A. represent individual and institutional investors across the United States who have lost money as a result of securities fraud or stockbroker misconduct. We will aggressively pursue claims to recover your losses or damages.
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